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Essay / Summary of the plot of "King Lear" by Shakespeare
Lear, the king of England, decides to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, but first he demands that they say how much they love him like. Of the three girls, only Cordelia, the youngest, tells him that she has nothing to say about the love she has for her father. King Lear then becomes furious with Cordelia and disowns her. The Duke of Burgundy, who previously wanted to marry Cordelia, changes his mind as soon as Lear tells him that she is now without a dowry. The King of France, however, still wants to marry her and Cordélia leaves with him. When Lear's servant Kent tries to tell his king that he has made a mistake, Lear becomes even more furious and banishes Kent from the kingdom. Lear then divides the kingdom between Regan and Goneril and says that he will live with both in turn accompanied by a hundred of his knights. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essay Meanwhile, the Earl of Gloucester's bastard son, Edmund, who is jealous of Gloucester's legitimate son, Edgar, elaborates plans against his father and half-brother. Edmund tells Gloucester that Edgar wants to kill him. This forces Edgar to run away and disguise himself as Tom O'Bedlam. Lear first goes to live with Goneril. She becomes angry with her father and his knights and orders Oswald and the rest of his servants to be rude to Lear and his knights. After disguising himself, Kent returns and is accepted into Lear's service. When Goneril finally meets Lear, she tells him that she has had enough of her knights' bickering and rioting and demands that he get rid of half of them. Lear becomes furious again and leaves to stay with Regan, thinking she will be more kind and welcoming. When Lear arrives at the castle, he is angry when Regan and Cornwall refuse to see him. When Regan and Goneril finally see him, they say they won't let him stay with them unless he gets rid of all his knights. Furious, Lear runs outside into a storm and his two daughters exclude him from the castle. Kent then goes looking for Lear and finds a gentleman who tells him that the king is near. Meanwhile, King Lear continues to rage and the Fool tries to convince him to return to his daughters and beg for shelter. When Kent finally finds Lear, the king finds himself alone with the Fool. Kent then leads them to a nearby hovel for shelter, but Lear does not want to go in and the Fool enters alone. He doesn't stay there long and flees with Tom O'Bedlam, who is actually Edgar in disguise, chasing him. When Lear notices that Edgar is naked, he takes off his clothes as well. At that point, Gloucester finds them and tries to convince the king to come with him to the castle. Lear says he will come, but only if he can bring Edgar with him. He hosts the group in a cabin outside his castle and urges Kent to take Lear to his daughter Cordelia. When Gloucester returns to his castle, Cornwall and Regan blind him as punishment for helping Lear. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay After being thrown out of the gates, Gloucester is driven by Edgar to Dover. At Dover, Oswald attempts to kill Gloucester, but Edgar intervenes and kills Oswald. When Lear wakes up, he sees Cordelia and asks for forgiveness, and she forgives him. Shortly after, a battle broke out between the French and British armies, and the French lost. As a result, Lear and Cordelia are captured and taken to prison. Albany challenges Edmund and names Edgar his champion. The two fight and Edgar wins. After the duel, Edgar reveals himself to Gloucester, who then dies. Edmund tells everyone that he ordered Cordelia's execution, and..